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A SUNSHINE Coast couple featured in a tabloid television "expose" say they have been targeted by hateful emails and threatening phone calls since the story went to air last Friday night.

Brett and Fiona Morris, say the backlash could cost them their Scooters Wholesale business in Maroochydore.

The couple were left "devastated" after A Current Affair (ACA) broadcast claims they had unfairly treated several elderly clients.

They say the program's producers refused the chance to look at documents which proved the allegations were false. Within minutes of the report first airing in Victoria at 5pm Queensland time, the couple began receiving vicious phone calls.

"We had 38 long messages and threatening emails telling us we better not go to sleep tonight; people saying they would burn the shop down," Mrs Morris said.

"I have never felt so sick."

The family business had branches in Cairns and Nowra and her sisters had also been targeted, she said.

The report accused the couple of selling second-hand scooters as new, over-charging for batteries, keeping customers' deposits, bullying customers and failing to order goods.

Mrs Morris said they only realised they were being targeted by ACA when reporter Kristina Harizim and a film crew burst in on December 6.

Caught off guard, Mrs Morris said she had no choice but to ask them to leave after Ms Harizim refused an offer to see documents she had on file.

The crew arrived again the following Thursday, when Mr Morris asked them to leave.

That was the only footage of the couple included in the report, despite their lawyers, Ferguson Cannon, contacting ACA requesting a reasonable right of reply before the program went to air.

"In hindsight maybe I should've given them an interview, but I feel that it wouldn't matter what I said," Mrs Morris said.

The Morris' have decided to take legal action against the program. They have also kept the threatening emails and phone messages and hope to pursue the people who sent them.

For now, Mrs Morris said the future of their business was "up in the air".

"Even though it's devastating and the worst thing that has ever happened to us, because we are good at what we do and because we have been at it for so long there are people out there that will see what has been done to us is wrong and will stick by us," she said.

Reader poll

How much do you trust TV current affairs programs?

This poll ended on 17 December 2013.

Completely - 3%

A fair bit - 4%

Not much - 24%

Not at all - 67%

This is not a scientific poll. The results reflect only the opinions of those who chose to participate.